Murakami leads Chan, Hanyu struggles

Japan's Daisuke Murakami grabbed a narrow lead in the men's competition at Skate Canada to upstage the Olympic rematch of Yuzuru Hanyu and Patrick Chan at the ISU Grand Prix event in Lethbridge, Alberta.

Murakami earned 80.88 points for his opening short programme, with Canada's Chan well within striking distance on 80.81 in his return to competition for the first time since he took silver at the 2014 Sochi Olympics behind Hanyu.

American Adam Rippon completed a tightly bunched top trio on 80.36 points with Hanyu shockingly in sixth on 73.25 points.

Hanyu paid the price for doubling a quadruple toe loop, which under new rules this season meant he earned no points for the jump.

He also turned a triple lutz-triple toe loop into a triple-double, so that, because of the repeated double toe, the entire element was invalidated.

On a night when all the top men made mistakes, last season's NHK Trophy winner Murakami came out on top -- but he'll have work to do to hold off Chan in Saturday's free skate.

Chan led off his routine with a stellar quadruple-triple combination, but he fell on a triple axel and doubled a triple lutz, for which he received zero points.

Out of synch, he finished after his music had ended.

"This program is so challenging," Chan said. "I'm walking a fine line between a highly difficult program transition-wise and (in terms of) character, and it becomes challenging."

- Wagner in command -

Ashley Wagner seized a commanding lead in the ladies' competition with a short programme packed with clean jumps and a little sex appeal.

The American recorded a personal best short programme score of 70.73 to lead her nearest rival, Japan's Yuka Nagai, by 7.38 points going into Saturday's free skate.

"I'm beyond ecstatic," she said after her routine to "Hip Hip Chin Chin."

"That was everything I know I am capable of as an athlete."

The shock of the night was Elizaveta Tuktamisheva, the reigning world champion from Russia whose error-strewn performance left her in seventh place.

Tuktamisheva doubled her planned triple axel and also flubbed her triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination.

Even more costly was doubling a triple lutz, the errors giving her a score of just 55.37 points.

While she struggled, 16-year-old Nagai -- in her first Grand Prix competition -- made the most of her debut on the sport's big stage.

She landed a lovely triple lutz-triple toe loop combination and a triple loop in a routine that garnered 63.35 points.

Nagai had a solid lead over third-placed compatriot Kanako Murukami, whose 59.79 points left her just 0.58 points ahead of Canadian Kaetlyn Osmond.

Canadians Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje waltzed to the ice dance lead with a short routine to Johann Strauss.

The world bronze medalists topped the field with 68.00 points ahead of Americans Maia and Alex Shibutani (66.00) and Russians Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev (64.38).

Canada's Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford led the pairs with a short programme that earned 72.46 points. Russians Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov were second and Canadians Kirsten Moore-Towers and Michael Marinaro third.
Source: AFP